The Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations & Coordination (MoNHSR&C), in collaboration with Integrity (Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning Partner for the Evidence for Health (E4H) Programme and the National Health Support Program (NHSP)), and with support from the British High Commission Islamabad, convened a national learning event titled “Rethinking Primary Health Care for Universal Health Coverage Implementation.”
The event brought together federal and provincial health leadership, development partners, academia, and civil society to discuss practical reforms to strengthen Primary Health Care (PHC) as the foundation for achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in Pakistan.
Discussions were informed by Integrity’s research study “Rethinking Primary Health Care in Pakistan”, which examines how PHC can better respond to rising non-communicable diseases, rapid population growth, climate-related risks, and health security challenges Drawing on national and global evidence, the study proposes a practical reform framework to strengthen public PHC and accelerate Pakistan’s progress towards UHC.
Federal Minister MoNHSR&C, Mr. Syed Mustafa Kamal emphasized that advancing PHC is a national priority to ensure access to quality essential health services without financial hardship. He acknowledged the support of the British High Commission Islamabad, the FCDO’s Evidence for Health Programme, the World Bank’s National Health Support Program, and Integrity for convening the learning platform and sharing critical research on rethinking PHC.
Sam Waldock, Development Director at the British High Commission Islamabad (FCDO), said that strong PHC improves access, quality, and public confidence in health services. He welcomed the focus on implementing the Essential Package of Health Services (EPHS), and promoting cross-provincial exchange to support effective scale-up. He also reaffirmed the UK’s long-term commitment to working with Pakistan and partners to expand access to quality services, reduce financial hardship, and strengthen resilient health systems.
Minister of State MoNHSR&C, Dr Malik Mukhtar Ahmad Bharath highlighted the importance of integrating maternal and child health, family planning, nutrition, communicable and non-communicable disease services, and health security within a unified PHC platform to address fragmentation and improve financial protection for citizens.
Anthony Ellis, CEO of Integrity, highlighted the importance of connecting evidence with leadership and implementation. He noted that the event aimed to move beyond analysis toward actionable, context-responsive reforms that strengthen sustainability, accountability, and learning across programmes and provinces. He added that Integrity is honoured to support the British High Commission and MoNHSR&C in convening key stakeholders, underscoring a shared commitment to resilient, inclusive, and equitable health systems.
Dr Jahanzaib Sohail, Senior Health Economist at The World Bank, also acknowledged Integrity’s efforts in bringing stakeholders together to share implementation experiences under E4H, NHSP, and related federal and provincial reforms.
Participants agreed on the need to shift from fragmented, vertical programme delivery toward integrated, digitally enabled, quality-assured PHC systems that are equitable, resilient, and responsive to Pakistan’s evolving demographic and epidemiological realities.
The learning event concluded with a shared commitment to accelerate implementation of evidence-informed PHC reforms across provinces.
The event reaffirmed that strengthening Primary Health Care is central to Pakistan’s progress toward Universal Health Coverage, improved population health outcomes, and long-term social and economic resilience.
